Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1887-04-06
poor mother at her home in far away

My dear Madam-Thanks, and vel
again thanks for your esteemed favor
Alas! 1t is my painful duty to inform
you ttat my sister, Nine. Piluquesne,
whose grief for the expatriati of my
nephew and her only :on was incessan,
and incons0lable, is no more. 1t was
my melancholy privilege to administer
to her the last rites Of our holy church
on the very day on which our little Pau.
left us for better inheritance.
''Sho was sleeping, and / staid to
watch and pray by her to the last. That
morning at the fifth hour she awoke
and started as if she had seen something
IN the sunlight, which had just peeped
III to give us good morrow"
My boy! my boy!' she cried, 4 am
coming! Stay but little and we will
journey together to tie promised land. ,
And so she passed away.
81 feel, L know that she had seen and
heard something which my eyes and
ears. of The earth, earthly could not
see or hear.
81 think it is your great poet (surely
his masterpiece) who says:
such harmony is in immortal souls
Doth grossly close US in, we cannot hear it.
"Agai /, and yet thousand times
again, thank you for all your love and
care for our tile Paul.
Permit poor priest who admires
the divine art of which mademoiselle is
SO distinguished an ornament, to pre-
sent the assurances of the profound con-
sideration with which he vent res to
subscribe himself, mademoiselle's CRATE
full humble servant,
PAUL PILUQUEsNE, ID. ID.
Mile Helene We're"
After Poor Pil's" death all kinds of
wild rumors obtained currency in the
theater. Larry swore that during the
performance of 1.-THE maid of Paliseau"
he saw Pill in the property room arrang-
ing the birds wings. Mrs. Cassidy
declared that one Saturday night, when
she was rather late in clearing the thea
ter, rs Sunday morning dawned she saw
him, nay, more, she heard him singing
"AdeSte, Fideles;" and the poor old
soul tainted away with terror
Certain it is that even Manly, the
manager, who was skeptic, to Larry's
delight withdrew the Magpie piece from
the repertory, and that Mrs. Cassidy for
the future did her cleaning the first
thing on Saturday morning. As for
actors-well, they are more or less su-
perstitious, and for many year after
that no actor could be induced to stay
in the Derby theater after midnight.
Once, indeed, Jack Holmes, sailor,
inst returned to his native place after
the war. and afflicted with plethora OF
prize money, took party of chums to
the gallery to see The Stranger"
which impressed him so powerfully that
he fell fast asleep.
His friends, overtaken by Bacchus,
forgot all about him. Equally oblivious
of his presence, the servants of the
thcater put out the lights, locked up End
left him TO his slumbers.
When honest Jack aYoke in "the
dead waste and middle of the night he
hadn't the faintest idea where he was.
As soon as he pulled himself together
he growled; "Where are those land lul-
bers? They've all sheered off and left
me at the mast-he d while they've
crawled down below through lubber's
hole"
At this moment he heard, or thought
he heard, soft voice speaking in an
unknown tongue.
Looking down on the stage, he saw
in the moonlight W. ich streamed
through a circular opening at the back
of the gallery, a fair young boy in
frayed aud worn foreign naval uniform.
lie had bright hair, great blue eyes and
an angel face, and drop OF blood
trickling from his pale lips.
''Hold hard, young powder monkey"
cried Jack. -4'm coming down on deck
to have a jaw with you.''
With that, with the agility of cat
he scrambled down the side of the gal
lery and boxes and leaped upon the
stage.
As he did so the figure faded into the
air. Wild with terror the sailor shrieked
and shouted until he alarmed the neigh
borhood.
When they took him out swOoning,
folks said that he was drunk. Perhaps
he was; but then-perhaps he wasn't.
At any rate he swore to his dying day
that he was sober; and all the kings
horses and all the kings men could
never induce Jack Holmes to cross the
threshold of the theater again.
As regularly as the players came to
Derby in the spring time, SO regularly
the oor French boys grave was be-
deoked daily with fresh flowers.
The years passe1 by, the good Old
manager died, the actors grew old and
were scattered half over the globe.
Soon after the ''Three Days in Paris" "
he who writes these lines, then
wretched child, who had Just lost one
nearer and dearer to him than all the
world, was casting some flowers on a
new-made sepulchre; when he caught
sight of a venerable and beautiful wo-
man clad in the garh of sister OF the
Scarce CDur engaged the same plouS
office at an adj icent grave. The lady
was attended By tall, thin, white
headed old man, who, from his peculiar
dress and demeanor, appeared 10 De q
foreigner. The grave at the Ioot OIL
which they stood had been neglected the
sexton said, for years. 1t had, however,
that very morning been covered WIN
fresh green turf and flowers, and
small mural cross with an inscription
now stood at its head.
AS the lady returned the basket when
had contained the flowers to her attend
ant she said in ? Singularly y.y'Ii sweet HnM ana
distinct voice: "Ah! mon ann iiom
hriubt and beautiful it seemed when
this poor boy was taken from us, thirty
wears ago. But now, how sordid and
soualid and miserahly provincial II all
Is. Even the little theater in which we
strutted and fretted our fiery hours
away in the spring time Of our lives iiS,ft.-
HE naIace of OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES IS 1t
now?" r., :,
strangely mixed accent, compounded
of French and Irish, ''if you ak me the
truth. it's like a blue mouldy, rotten
orange-box, that's what 1t Is;
"Perhaps it was always thus, Larry,
ond tits only we who are changed; all
things are beautiful to the young.
.sTbin all things are beautiful to you,